Oh my, Lemons and Blackheads!

Looking for a way to naturally diminish your blackheads?
Fear not! I have a solution for you.

With money being so tight, dermatologist appointments are definitely at the bottom of my to-do list. I've never really been big into using harsh chemicals on my skin, anyways. At home extraction is easy, affordable, and natural. You can safely get flawless, radiant skin with the things you have in your refrigerator. (Okay, why is refrigerator spelled without a D?) Anywho...

Let me give you a little background on what a blackhead is so you better understand what we are getting rid of:
Blackheads are a type of acne. They are actually the first stage of acne that forms before bacteria declares war on your pores. Excess dirt, make-up, and hormones in the skin result in the stimulation of your oil glands. Which in turn, leads to excess oil production. This oil in your skin eventually turns into a ball that turns black when oxygen comes in contact with it and it embeds itself into your pores.

I have found and tested some simple and effective ways to get rid of those little buggers for you guys! Open your fridge and let's get to be-heading those blackheads.

What you will need:
Your favorite cleanser
2 large eggs (separate and trash the yolks)
Lemon juice
Sugar
Boiling water
Two Q-tips or pieces of tissue paper (to keep your fingers off your face)
A hand towel
Blackheads

Be-heading:
1.) Start boiling your water.

2.) The first thing you want to do is separate the whites from the yolk of both eggs and put them in a bowl. Add a teaspoon of lemon juice and whisk it together until there are a few bubbles at the top (don't go making a meringue ladies, we aren't making lemon pies!) This is going to be your mask.

3.) Combine sugar and a little lemon juice together to make a sugar scrub. Make sure that it is gritty enough to exfoliate your skin. If you have sensitive skin and don't want to scrub too hard, use less sugar. Exfoliating your skin is going to help scrub away all the dead skin cells, dirt, and oil away from your skin so you can better see and extract those blackheads!

PAUSE! Wait? We are putting lemons on our face because why, Raychel?
I'll tell you why.

These little guys are your holy grail for getting rid of blackheads, acne, and even fading scars and discoloration. Goodbye dull skin! Lemons are a natural source of hydroxy acids. Beta hydroxy acid helps to exfoliate your skin and get rid of dead skin cells to make room for new cell growth. These acids are used in chemical peels to erase fine lines. Alpha hydroxy acids hydrate your skin, prevent clogged pores, improves texture, and increases the production of collagen leaving you with a glowing complexion!

Back to the be-heading.

4.) While you are still waiting for your water to boil, cleanse your face with your favorite cleanser and warm water. I would recommend one that is not too invasive or drying. Pat dry.

5.) After you've cleansed your skin, start scrubbing away with your lemon sugar scrub. Scrub in circular motions all over the area you are extracting from. Don't worry about getting any in or around your mouth. It's quite tasty! Wipe clean with a warm, damn wash cloth. (By the way, I would highly recommend using this scrub once a week just for the benefits)

6.) Now that you've gotten rid of the dead skin cells and opened your pores a little bit, let's open them up some more. Grab your hand towel and drape it over the back of your head, leaning over the steam from the boiling water. Steam your face for about five minutes. You should feel a tingling or cool sensation every once and a while. That's your pores opening!

7.) Now we are cleansed, scrubbed, steamed, and ready to start extracting. Grab your Q-tips or tissues (wrap the tissues around your index fingers like a mit). This is for sanitation purposes. DO NOT use your fingernails or bare fingers. There is all kinds of yuckies in there that will cause you to break out. Stretch the skin around the blackhead by pulling away from it with your fingers or Q-tips and then push in and under the blackhead. While pushing in, wiggle your fingers back and forth to shimmy the blackhead out. Wipe away each one off the skin as you go. Simply grabbing the skin and squeezing not only hurts but it causes damage to your skin and may push the bottom half of the blackhead deeper into the pores.

8.) After you're done gawking at the grodyness that has leaked out of your pores, it's time to put your mask on. It's going to feel slimy and weird, I know. But, it's worth it in the end. Apply the egg white/lemon juice mask all over your face and let sit until hardened. (You'll know it's hardened when you feel like you've had about 50 botox injections and can't smile) Wash off the mask with cold water and use a toner of your choice. Moisturizing is essential afterwards!! The egg whites are going to dry out your skin and help get rid of any blemishes you already had.

And there you go! Wa-la! Fresh, soft, radiant skin with all natural products used. I hope this helps. Enjoy your new freshly perfected skin, my cupcakes! For more skin care routines, like this post or tell me what you think is my ask box.

Terra, be VERY careful with your boyfriend's skin. Make sure he isn't allergic to any of the ingredients used even though they are natural. Plus, even though boys act tough, wiggling out his blackheads might make him a little fussy!

never tried it on my black heads or face BUT for many years my daughter now 12 would get dark discolored skin on the back of her elbows and front of her knees. I would scrub and scrub them but they still looked dirty. My mom said to take a lemon cut it in half pour salt or sugar on it and scrub her elbows and knees with it. No joke I couldn't believe it but every time it cleaned the dark spots off the skin. I will have to try your method for black heads on my husband!

Hi!
I've just joined and this post definitely caught my eye as I've tried just about everything to clear the blackheads on my nose... BUT I'm allergic to eggs, so is there anything I could substitute in the mask part? Kaolin clay maybe?
I'm definitely going to try the sugar scrub tho :) Thank you!

Brittany C - I'd love to see your method of using olive oil! You should post it!

Amanda L - Lemons are a miracle worker! I had the same problem on my knees and started using the lemon/sugar scrub in the shower and they diminished incredibly!

April L - I've heard of lemons lightening your hair but, I didn't know they could help with dandruff! I'll have to try that in the winter when my skin gets dry!

Georgy R - Kaolin Clay is PERFECT! It has the ability to balance the skin's sebum activity. That would be a great mask to use after you've gotten rid of some blackheads. Definitely try the lemon sugar scrub in place of your exfoliant for two or three weeks and see if you have any results. Exfoliating is going to shake those buggers out! Also, bananas are good for getting rid of blackheads. Try a lemon banana mask instead of the egg whites :)

I tried this and although I have been treating the blackheads on my t-zone rather successfully for a while (so there wasnt a HUGE difference because of my pre existing alright condition) I felt like it really did make a difference anyway. sometimes I cant tell if what I have are so much blackheads or more enlarged pores but it looked flawless afterwards and the steam really helped my face absorb my moisturizer afterwards. I'll be doing this again soon!

@Rachele H - I am the same way! I felt like I had the same blackheads on my nose since I first started to notice my teenage acne problems years ago. Hope this does wonders for you like it does me! :)

@Sofia C - Enlarged pores and blackheads are really hard to tell the difference between. The only way you're going to be able to tell the difference is by using a magnifying mirror and really investigating those babies! If you have blackheads, it's almost guaranteed that you will have enlarged pores due to the clogging. So glad this worked for you, too!

Massage 2 tablespoons of lemon juice into your scalp and rise with warm water. Then do a leave-in rinse of 1 teaspoon lemon juice in 1 cup of warm water. You do both of these daily until your scalp is healed. (“⌒.⌒”)

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